Imperial has won nine straight games at home (dating back to last season), while Central has won nine straight on the road, but those streaks won't matter much on Friday. The Imperial Tigers will host the Central Spartans at 7:00 p.m. Imperial knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past five contests -- so hopefully Central likes a good challenge.
Imperial's usually-dominant defense will be looking to make up for Friday's struggle, when Valley Center offense got past them. Imperial managed a 52-47 victory over Valley Center on Friday. The Tigers' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
Imperial's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Jayden Ayala led the charge by throwing for 344 yards and five touchdowns while completing 87.5% of his passes. Deren Hueso was Ayala's top target, rushing for 145 yards and a touchdown on only 14 carries, while also picking up 89 receiving yards and a touchdown.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Imperial was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 277 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 168 rushing yards in six consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Central got the win against Cibola on Friday by a conclusive 42-20. The Spartans might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three games by 20 points or more this season.
Imperial's win bumped their record up to 6-0. As for Central, their victory bumped their record up to 5-1.
Imperial came up short against Central in their previous matchup back in October of 2023, falling 14-10. Will Imperial have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other football content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
